Joseph ross



J. ROSS.

DECOY.

Patented Oct. 1,1895.

(No Model.)

ANDREW B.GRAHAM. PHUTO-UTHO. wASmNGTUN. n C

iiNrTsn STaTns FATTNT Ormes.

JOSEPH ROSS, OF LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO SETII OURLIN, OF SAME PLACE.

DECOY.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 547,033, dated October 1, 1895.

Serial No. 5431752. (No model.)

.To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, JOSEPH Ross, a citizen of the United States, residing at Louisville, in the county of Jefferson and State of Kentucky, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Decoys; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and eX- act description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to improvements in decoys, and the object that I have in view is to provide a simple and durable decoy for sportsmen,which can be manufactured and sold at a minimum of cost. I am aware that inflatable decoys have heretofore been manufactured of rubber and of air-proof textile fabric, which are intended to be blown up or inflated by the user; but experience has shown that these rubber andteXtile decoys are liable to crack or have air-vents formed therein, so that in the course of time they leak air, which Objection is very annoying to the Sportsmen, because it often happens that these leaks cannot be repaired .on the spot. Hence under these conditions the decoy collapses and cannot be advantageously used. I overcome these objections by constructing a decoy which combines a float with a body, preferably. of textile material, which is so attached to the iioat that one entire side of the body can be opened to permit the user to till the body with a suitable light material for the purposeof distending the body and causing it to assume an upright position proper for use as a decoy. In my construction one side and end of the material forming the body is fastened along its edge to the float in a suitable manner to permit the material to be lifted away from the float to expose a large opening for the purpose of filling the body or of removing the lling, after which the edge of the body may be again fastened to the float. Any suitable filling which is readily accessible to the user may be employed-as, for instance, grass, straw, leaves, or the like-and as a suitable filling material can easily be obtained at the place where the decoy is to be used the sportsman is not required to carry the filling with him.

My invention further consists in the construction of parts, which will be hereinafter fully described and claimed.

I have illustrated the preferred embodiment of my invention in the accompanying drawings, forminga part of this specification, and in Which- Figure l is a perspective View of my decoy. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal central view thereof. Fig. 3 is a perspective view illustrating the position of the body when it is desired to place the filling in, or remove it from, the body. Fig. 4 is a detail view, in elevation, showing one means which may be adopted for fastening the flap or side of the decoy in place on the float.

Like letters of reference denote corresponding parts in all the figures.

A designates the float, and Bis the body of the decoy, constructed in accordance with my present invention. The float A is preferably of wood and the body B is of textile fabric, although other materials for the float and body may be used, if desired. I prefer to use the materials named because they are cheap and enable me to manufacture and sell the decoys at a very low price. The iioat A is properly shaped and of such size as to conform to the fowl it is desired to imitate, and this float is of such thickness as to provide for the secure attachment of the means adopted for attaching the body B to the edges of the float. The body B is cut out of fabric to produce the neck, head, and tail of the fowl, which pieces are cut according to a suitable pattern and. sewed or otherwise united together. The lower part of the body is left open to permit the iioat to be fitted therein, and the lower edges of the body are arranged to lap over the edges of the iioat, whereby the iioat is concealed from View within the body. l prefer to make the back b of the body in one piece, the breast, neck, and head of four pieces, (indicated at 0,) the sides of two pieces d, and the tail in one piece e, although I do not limit myself to this peculiar style of body. The pieces c, which form the breast, neck, and head are united together and to the back piece l?, and then the side pieces d are united to the back and breast pieces b c, respectively. The lower edges of the breast and side pieces are free ICO ' cated in Fig. 3.

or unconiined, and the body is adjusted over the float, or the fioat within the body, so that the free edges of the body overlap the side edges of the float, after which the body and float are fastened together in any one of a number of ways; but the fastening means employed must be of such character as to permit one of the sides CZ to be readily disconnected from the float, and I therefore leave the tail end of the body open and employ a suitable fastening, which admits of one or both of the sides being easily detached from the float. The side pieces d d of the body are not united together at the tail end of the decoy. I-Ience either side piece can be lifted or raised with ease. As one means for fastening the decoy-body to the float, I have shown the taoksf, which are driven through the body and into the edges of the float, and as these tacks have the large exposed heads they can be withdrawn along the side (one or both) of the body to permit the side piece or pieces d to be raised for the purpose of placing or removing the filling.

It is evident that the side or flap d of the body may be fastened detachably to the float in different ways other than by tacking it in place. In Fig. l I have shown the free edge of the flap or side d as provided with buttonholes to receive the heads of the pins. In Fig. 4 a series of staples are provided along the edge of the oat, which are adapted to pass through the buttonholes in the side or Hap d when the latter is drawn down alongside of the float', and through these staples is passed a confiningcord or its equivalent, one end of the cord being fastened to the Iioat and the other end being tied to another cord on the fioat. I do not, therefore, limit myself to any particular means for fastening the side or flap d to the float.

By constructing the body of the decoy with the unconfined sides at the tail end and by detachably fastening the edges of the body to the float, one side of the body can be lifted to expose a large opening or space, as indi- This construction enables the sportsman to easily place and pack the filling in the body, so as to distend the body and adapt the decoy for use, and when it is desired to empty the body the filling can as easily and quickly be withdrawn, because the hand can be thrust through the large opening to remove the filling. The lling is indicated at D, in Fig. 2 of the drawings, as occupying all the space in the body, breast, neck, and head of the decoy, and this filling may be of any suitable material readily obtained bythe sportsman at the place where the decoy is to be used-sueh, for example, as grass, straw, leaves, paper, excelsior, dsc.

The decoy-body is to be painted or otherwise finished in imitation of the fowl it is to resemble. My improved decoy is collapsible to enable the body to be compactly folded upon the iioat, and the decoy is thus adapted to be stored in a small space.

I-Iaving thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. As an article of manufacture, a decoy comprising a fioat and a body having its lower edge, either partially or Wholly, detachably fastened to the float and adapted to be lifted from the decoy to expose a comparatively large opening for the supply or removal of a filling material, substantially as and for the purposes described.

2. Adecoy comprisinga float, a hollow body fitted over the edges of the float and united thereto, and a filling which distends the body, substantially as and for the purposes described.

3. As a new article of manufacture, an improved decoy comprising the body B having its parts united together and provided with the sides d, d, which are unconfined or free at their rear ends, a iioat fitted within the lower open side of the body, and attaching means which detachably fasten the edges of the body to the float and which confine the rear ends of the side pieces d in proper position, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two Witnesses.

JOSEPH ROSS. Vitnesses:

WM. MCFARLAND, J. L. MADDOX. 

